Fluence to supply 250-MW battery to boost Germany's transmission capacity

A subsidiary of energy storage solutions provider Fluence Energy Inc (NASDAQ:FLNC) and German transmission system operator (TSO) TransnetBW GmbH will deploy a 250-MW battery-based energy storage-as-transmission project in Baden-Wuerttemberg.

The storage system will be supplied by Fluence and installed at Kupferzell, a major North-South grid hub, to increase the transmission capacity of existing power lines and reduce the need for re-dispatch measures without putting network security at risk.

The system will support the power network through services such as synthetic inertia, dynamic voltage control, contingency support, and congestion management.

The initiative, dubbed Netzbooster or Grid Booster, should be completed in 2025. It is the world's largest battery-based energy storage-as-transmission project, Fluence said on Wednesday.

The deployment of the battery will ensure the security of supply and reduce operating costs which will lead to lower network charges. It will provide backup capacity in case of a failure of the transmission grid and will support the transportation of energy from Germany's wind-swept North, where the country's wind energy capacity is concentrated, to the south which hosts nuclear and coal-fired power plants that are being closed.

Commenting on the importance of the project, Paul McCusker, SVP & President EMEA at Fluence said: "Given the current energy crisis impacting Europe and the focus on accelerating renewable buildout under the RePowerEU plans, the deployment of this project is more urgently needed than ever.”

Netzbooster was first unveiled by TransnetBW, one of Germany's four transmission system operators, in 2019 as part of the 2030 German grid development plan. The project was approved by the Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) at the end of the same year.

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